Bismarck Youth Baseball 2017 AA Division Rules Rules Highlights While Bismarck Youth Baseball generally follows the rule book published for the Cal Ripken Division of the Babe Ruth League, the Bismarck Youth Baseball board has adopted a few variations to those rules. A summary of these rule variations for the AA Division is provided below. The AA Division Designed for players 9 and 10 years of age. Players rotate positions throughout the season. Regulation baseball rules are utilized. Scores are recorded, but wins/losses do not affect tournament seeding. Team Rosters If a coach needs to add players to their roster during the season due to someone leaving the program, or they have repeated difficulty in fielding a team due to absentees, contact your division director. All players added to teams during the season must be approved by the President and the Player Agent. Player’s Attendance at Games and Practices Without just reason as approved by the division director or player agent, a player must be in attendance at 85 percent of the games and practices, including playoffs. Failure to attend 85 percent of the games and practices may result in a player’s ineligibility to participate. The determination as to whether a player should be found ineligible due to absentees cannot be made by a coach and must be made by the division director and player agent. Games may be played with 8 players (NO automatic out). No games may be played with less than 8 players. Playing Time Each team may field a maximum of 9 players on defense per each ½ inning of play. No extra fielders are allowed. Players who do not start in the field for the 1st game should start in the field for the next game, etc. A coach may reduce playing time for injuries, unexcused absences, or unacceptable behavior (e.g., throwing equipment, taunting, profane language or other unsportsman-like conduct). Coaches will inform the umpire and opposing coach before the start of a game if a player will not be playing. Infield and Outfield rotation is recommended for all players, however players will be rotated through positions they can perform to their best abilities. Equal playing time is encouraged, but may be affected by player attitude and lack of attendance, and or, ability to play a skilled position, i.e. pitching, catching, or first base. Batting Roster Batting order is set at the beginning of the game and cannot be changed once the game starts. All players will be on the batting lineup regardless if they played in the field that ½ inning or not. If a player is injured, the next batter in the lineup bats for that player and the order continues, no out is recorded for the injured player. Each ½ inning will be 3 outs or a maximum of 6 runs scored, which ever happens first. For the next inning, the batting lineup begins where it left off the previous inning. Batting order should change every game. Create a rotation so that all players move up 2 or 3 spots in the lineup for the next game. This ensures every player gets a chance to hit in every spot and it will also give all your players an equal amount of at-bats for the season. Legal Bats Only bats with a 2 ¼” barrel are legal. Baseball bats only. All bats must be stamped “Approved For Play in Babe Ruth Baseball” and meet the requirement of the Babe Ruth League, Inc. 2017 Baseball Rules and Regulations regarding baseball bats.
BYB 2017Rules – AA
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On-Deck Batter For safety reasons, the on-deck batter must stay in the dugout until the batter is done batting. After the batter is done, the on-deck batter should quickly approach the batter’s box, take a practice swing, and step up to the plate. The on-deck batter must put the batting helmet on in the dugout and be ready to go. As a safety precaution, there should be no practice swings outside of the field or in the dugout. Parents and Coaches, please discourage this as soon as you see a player begin to swing as serious injuries do and have occurred because a batter is swinging the bat where others can be hit. Substitutions The only substitutions a coach must report to the umpire is a pitching substitution. Although we do not require coaches to report all field substitutions, WE EXPECT EACH COACH WILL STRIVE TO PLAY BY USING ALL THE PLAYERS FAIRLY. AA Division Pitching All players on the roster are eligible to pitch. A player may not pitch on back-to-back days, no matter their pitch count or innings pitched in the first game. If a pitcher delivers one (1) pitch in an inning they shall be charged for one (1) inning pitched. A player may pitch a maximum of three (3) innings per game and is limited to six (6) innings per week. The pitcher is required to pitch from the standard 46-foot distance. Bismarck Youth Baseball does not permit adults to warm-up pitchers before/during an inning. All pitchers should be warmed up using another player. Pitching week for Bismarck Youth Baseball is Saturday – Friday. The pitch count rule also applies to travel players who pitch in a tournament over a weekend, they will need to take the required rest days before pitching in a league game. The re-entry rule is not recognized in Bismarck Youth Baseball regular league games. When a pitcher is removed from the pitching position they may not return to that position again in that game. Bismarck Youth Baseball does not permit adults to warm-up pitchers before/during an inning. All pitchers should be warmed up using another player. Any player warming up the pitcher must wear a catcher’s mask. The BYB Board of Directors may modify the pitching restrictions for local tournament play. If the pitching restrictions are modified, coaches will be notified.
AA Division (9 & 10 years old)
Daily Pitch Maximum 50
1 Day Rest Period 1-35
2 Day Rest Period 36-50
Balk Rule Cal Ripken does not enforce the balk rule. Game Time Limit The first game will run from 5:30PM to 7:15PM, with no new inning starting after 7:00 PM. The teams playing the first game MUST be off the field by 7:15 PM. No exceptions. The second game will run from 7:30 PM to 9:15 PM with no new inning starting after 9:00 PM. There are NO LIGHTS at the Scheels Sports Complex. Regulation games are 6 innings or, 90 minutes, whichever comes first. It is a regulation game after four (4) innings. There is no 10 run rule, only the maximum innings or the time limit rule ends a game. In the case of tie games, the game ends in a tie. Scoring Teams are allowed to score a maximum of 6 runs per inning. Stealing/Advancement • Stealing of Second base IS ALLOWED after the pitch has crossed home plate – either directly or on a wild pitch or passed ball. • Stealing of Third base or Home IS NOT ALLOWED, even on a wild pitch or passed ball. BYB 2017Rules – AA
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Leading off IS NOT ALLOWED. Runners must be on the base until the pitch crosses Home Plate. Batters CANNOT advance to 1st base on a dropped 3rd strike, they are out. Runners at Second or Third base MAY NOT advance on an overthrow by the catcher back to the pitcher. Runners at Second or Third base MAY NOT advance on an overthrow by the catcher on a steal of Second base. If the ball is not put into play, runners at Second or Third base must return to their respective bases before every pitch. Delayed Stealing IS NOT ALLOWED in the AA Division. Courtesy Runner IS ALLOWED for the catcher or an injured player. The runner must come from the bench, and if possible it should be the player that made the last out.
Bunting Bunting is allowed, whether for a base hit or a sacrifice. Dugout Only players and coaching staff are allowed in the dugout or on the bench. The coaching staff is limited to two adult coaches and one team manager. The home team dugout is along first base. Base Coaching Two adult coaches can serve as base coaches. A bench coach is recommended, but not necessary. Uniforms Players must be in full league uniform. Full league uniform includes all items the League provides including: hat (faced forward unless catching), jersey (tucked in) belt, pants and socks. Since all these items are provided by the League, failure of a player to be in full uniform including hat will result in the inability to participate in the game. We encourage each team Coach or Coordinator to pick a solid color of t-shirt to wear under their jersey (i.e. white, black, red, etc). Players are not allowed to wear chains, earrings, watches, pins, etc. No metal spikes are allowed. Injured players wearing casts are not allowed to participate. We require all catchers to wear a supporter with a protective cup. Tournaments The League will hold a season-end tournament for the AA Division. Bracket assignments are determined by a random drawing. Additional information will be provided as the season progresses. Umpire Guidelines Due to Bismarck Youth Baseball’s struggle to provide quality volunteer umpires each year, the Board of Directors has implemented umpire guidelines for officiating AA Division League Games. The consequence of not having sufficient Umpires to officiate a league game may result in a game forfeiture. Each AA Division team will be required to provide two volunteer parents to serve as official league game umpires for the season. These two volunteers will alternate officiating games throughout the season. The consequence of not providing an Umpire at a league game will result in a game forfeiture. Each set of team umpires will share an equipment bag with the necessary equipment to officiate a league game. It will be the Umpire’s responsibility to see that the bag is with the proper person each game. The home team’s Umpire will be positioned behind the plate. The visiting team’s Umpire will umpire the bases. Each Umpire volunteer will be provided with an Umpire shirt and hat. Each volunteer is required to attend the Umpire clinic PRIOR TO THE START OF THE SEASON. At the clinic, we will review our league rules as well as other baseball rules you will need to know. BYB 2017Rules – AA
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If a team fails to produce two volunteers for umpiring training that team’s games will be forfeited until they have supplied two (2) properly trained volunteers. Head Coaches may not serve as one of the two volunteers. Assistant Coaches may serve as an Umpire volunteer; however they may NOT perform any coaching duties during any game they are officiating. Complaining and ridiculing the Umpires will NOT be tolerated at any of our games. This is the remedy necessary for our League to have a sufficient number of Umpires to officiate games played throughout the season and through the playoffs. The umpires are charged with the responsibility of game conduct and enforcing the league rules and regulations. A coach cannot, under any condition, dispute an umpire call on the field in an argumentative fashion. Arguing with an umpire or with another coach, player or parent will NOT be tolerated and is grounds for removal from the game, and possibly from the program by the BYB Board of Directors. An umpire’s judgment call - good or bad - is final and is not eligible for protest. A judgment call includes calling balls, strikes, and outs. An umpire’s call involving application of the rules is subject to protest. Consult your rulebook for the proper and respectful way to protest a call or a game. Bismarck Youth Baseball, Incorporated has adopted a zero tolerance policy regarding this matter. See the Sportsmanship section for more details as to the official process of handling sportsmanship issues. Sportsmanship Coaches are responsible for their own behavior, as well as the behavior of their Assistant Coaches, Players and Player parents/family members/spectators. If inappropriate behavior is observed by an umpire, or brought to an umpire’s attention, the umpire will bring the two coaches together to determine which team is represented by the individual(s) exhibiting the behavior. The applicable coach will then give a warning to the individual(s). If the behavior continues after the warning, then the umpire will stop the game, and the applicable coach will be responsible for pulling the associated player off the field and asking the offending party, player and player family to leave the field. Play should not continue until this has occurred. This is not an option for the coach to decide, this is the policy that must be followed. BYB has a zero-tolerance for inappropriate sportsmanship, and all parents agreed to such at the time of registration. The Board will support any enforcement of this policy undertaken by the umpires and coaches. Should the spectator, family member, player or coach partake in unsportsmanlike behavior at any future games, the player and family will be removed from the League by the Board of Directors, and future registrations will not be considered for siblings. By the day after a warning or ejection is given, umpires/coaches should send an email summarizing the situation to
[email protected]. The BYB Executive Committee will consult with the appropriate Division Director and Director of Umpires to determine if any additional action is necessary. All documentation will be retained by the League for future reference.
BYB 2017Rules – AA
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